Sergio vows to play with emotion
Sergio Garcia today insisted he will offer no apologies for pumping his fist, jumping several feet in the air or enveloping his team-mates in bear hugs during the course of the Ryder Cup.
The spirited Spaniard, 24, is well aware that the life he brings to the golf course is too lively for some.
The manner in which he celebrated the moment of Europe's victory over the United States at The Belfry two years ago, by sprinting down the 18th fairway and leaping into the arms of Pierre Fulke, was met with a degree of disdain by Davis Love whose match with his Swedish opponent remained in the balance.
But on the eve of Europe's defence of the cup, Garcia insisted: "I try to have fun and play my best. But I try not to hurt anybody's feelings." Bernhard Langer, captain of the Europe team, knows how important it is to the future of the Ryder Cup that emotions are controlled.
He also knows how important Garcia is to Europe's cause. Playing as a 19-year-old rookie at Brookline in 1999 he scored three-and-a-half points out of four partnered by eccentric Swede Jesper Parnevik.
Three years later he scored three points from four matches partnering the rather more laconic Englishman Lee Westwood.
Langer's answer to the conundrum of how to exploit Garcia's remarkable talent while keeping that natural exuberance in some kind of check could be a new pairing with Luke Donald.
They don't come any cooler than this Ryder Cup rookie. "I want them to win points and they are capable of doing that," said Langer. "They will fire each other on."
Garcia has already given Donald a taste of what is to come.
When the Englishman was announced as one of Langer's two personal picks for the Europe team,
Garcia revealed: "I gave him a hug and told him it was going to be fun." Whether Love sees it like that, should the American come up against Garcia when the draw for the first round of fourballs is announced today, is probably open to debate.
